No Man Left Behind
by AnnaMorrison
Summary: During a case, two Special Agents are kidnapped, one of them being hurt. Will they survive in the captivity, even though the time and weather are against them? No pairing, no slash.
1. Prologue

_Hey guys, I'm back! I know I promised to add a few chapters of my story "Late Night Confession", but I felt the need to work on this one, since I've been writing it for some time. So, don't worry, you'll get your promised drunk and hurting Tony again and of course, the next chapter of this story is in the state of being produced. I just have no idea when it will be finished, because I'll probably not send it to my beta until the story is close to being done, just to keep myself working. I actually am writing several stories right now, so imagine I have a lot of work to do. Just to clear things - this story is not supposed to contain any pairing between the characters. I'm a cautious Tiva shipper (yes, I don't like the character of EJ Barrett - not (only) because she rips the team off but also because I've got a bad feeling about her, she just doesn't seem all that sincere and pure. No offense there, it's just my personal view. And no offense against the actress, Sarah Jane Morris - I strongly believe in the goodness of her character. The role just didn't meet my liking. On the other hand, I think that's just what the screenwriters want us to feel...) Beside that, my life is catching up on me - I'm finishing the high school in less than a month and the tests and exams are probably going to kill me off. If any of you rememberes, please wish me a good luck tomorrow, since it's the day of one of my entrance exams to an university._

_Okay, enough rambling about me, more about the fic. Again, all my thanks go to LD100 and Drama-Duchess - the first inspires me and delivers the ideas, while the second shares her knowledge and language skills and figures as the most lovely beta you can imagine._

_This story will provide more trips to the minds of our favourite team and inspect the strenght of their mutual friendship. Well, what exactly wouldn't have you done for your best friend?_

_If you like it, please leave a review. I knoe I'm terrible at the feedback, but I promise I'll try to answer all of your reviews this time, I swear._

_Enjoy!_

**_Prologue_**

Tony's vision blurred when he opened his eyes. To be honest, he felt pretty awful. There was a stubborn pain growing in the back of his head. Everything was fuzzy and appeared unrealistic, making it extremely hard to focus. It was like seeing things through mucky water. His head was swimming. For a second, he was convinced that he was indeed swimming, but then he realized that swimming usually wasn't so painful. No, swimming was an easy task. It was natural, liberating, and didn't involve a crushing sensation by water mass. Swimming made him feel free and unrestrained by gravity. It was like flying. That was probably why he always loved the water so much. Back in school, he was the best swimmer of his class. Kids used to call him "Gills" because he could hold his breath for more than four minutes under water. He never had a fear of drowning, well, until his lungs filled up with liquid after contracting the pneumonic plague.

Swimming was definitely not how he felt right then. Tony felt numb and detached from his body, like as if his flesh had been replaced by Jello. There was a sensitive, tingling feeling in his right shoulder. He suddenly remembered it was the same feeling he felt after waking from anesthesia. But he also quite often woke to see a white ceiling above him and a concerned face of one of his teammates, which was most likely Gibbs.

There were neither hospital ceilings nor familiar faces this time. He was alone and lying upon a mass of black rock. He turned his head to see something white drifting in the air around him and something that looked like the shape of trees? Well, he wasn't sure, since his vision sucked.

He tried to sit up, but cried out in agony as pain bit into his shoulder. He couldn't prevent the sharp yelp from escaping from his lips. His head felt like a ton of lead, pulling him back downwards. He had no clue on his whereabouts. He did not know why he was there or how he'd gotten there. It was so hard to think straight.

He only knew that something really bad happened. He was lying on the rocks, injured and feeling sick. To make matters worse, it was snowing.

He saw a vision of his father approaching him. The man looked no older than thirty, with wild dark curls (something that Tony Jr. supposed many women found highly attractive), almond-shaped sea-green eyes (which both father and son shared), and a kind smile on his lips. Tony never remembered his father looking at him with a kind smile. That was the type of thing Dad reserved for the ladies, but never for his only son. No exceptions.

"Dad..." Tony whispered, but as soon as the words slipped out of his lips he broke into a coughing fit. He made an attempt to sit up, but his weakness gave in. He had only the feeble strength of a newborn kitten. Tears filled his eyes as he tried to clear his lungs, though without much success. His heartbeat thumped fiercely in his ears. Barely able to hold himself up, he fell back onto the ground and curled his knees to his chest. The oxygen flow seemed scarce and diminished around him way too fast.

After what seemed like an eternity times three, Tony was finally able to inhale without his lungs exerting all its power. He was exhausted and literally spent. Somehow, he felt his father's eyes still watching him.

"Go 'way, Dad," Tony whispered softly, not wanting his father to see weakness. Vulnerability was not something Tony wanted to show. "Leave me."

"DiNozzo," a voice called. Tony was pretty sure it didn't belong to his father, but he didn't care. Nothing made sense anymore. "Look at me." A hand grabbed his elbow firmly.

"No...," he moaned. "Leave me...'lone."

"Tony," the voice said again. Someone was turning him on his back. He saw the stern face of his grey-haired boss, Gibbs. "What are you saying?"

Tony had to close his eyes, unable to keep them open anymore. "Want him...out, Gibbs. Make...'im leave. Please... please..," he mumbled.

Tony felt Gibbs pull him to an upright sitting position. He didn't understand anything the man said. Words were choppy. Tony was too busy trying to survive. In his suffocation, Tony gulped for air. The sound of it was too similar – no, absolutely identical – to sobbing. He knew that when or if he got out of this alive, he would never be able to look his boss in the eyes again. He'd die from embarrassment. But right then, he could care less.

He ignored the arm creeping up his body. At least, until it came down to his throat with strength only a Marine could possess. Tony's his eyes shot open. Too weak to fight back, Tony struggled with all his might to free himself from the hold. By the looks of it, Tony was sorely losing the battle. He was going to die. He just couldn't understand it. Why was _he_ doing this? Out of all the people to end his life, why must it be Gibbs? Why must he be betrayed by the one person whom he admired and looked up to all these years? Gibbs was like a father to him. This was wrong.

He heard soft, regrettable words that sounded something like "I'm so sorry, Tony."

Gibbs was killing him and apologizing for it?

All Tony could see before his vision finally faded to black was his father's cruel smile as the old man turned to leave.

* * *

><p><em>12 hours earlier<em>

"Hey Timmy, come here," called Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo.

"Okay, Tony. What is it _this_ time?" Tim McGee asked in annoyance. "Another half-naked poster of some woman, like the one you showed me yesterday?"

"Hey, I resent that comment. It was not a half-naked poster of _some_ woman. It was only the best fan-made movie poster of Star Wars: Episode VI ever," Tony defended. "And don't pretend you didn't know what that is. You're an IT, a computer geek, a cyber dweeb. There's no nerd on the face of the Earth who hasn't seen Star Wars."

Ziva laughed from her desk. "Yes, absolutely, DiNozzo."

"I never said I haven't seen Star Wars," McGee replied. "And I actually did have a semi-crush on Princess Leia back in the day, but I found R2-D2 to be more compelling and humorous."

"Humorous, maybe, but definitely not hotter," Tony said. His eyes had the far-away glow of reminiscing the days gone by. "She was my childhood heroine, the beautiful and fearless Princess Leia..."

"Keep dreaming if you want to be unemployed," Gibbs' voice sounded behind the two agents as he walked from the stairs leading to Director Vance's office. His right hand flew forward and slapped the back of Tony's head.

"Sure, Boss," Tony said quickly and straightened in his chair. "On it, Boss."

"Grab your gear," Gibbs ordered. He put down his cup of coffee and retrieved his backpack from behind his desk. "A dead Marine found in a factory hall in Maryland. Ducky will meet us there." He took his coffee off the table and took a sip as he walked to the elevator.

"Let us hope Palmer will not get lost again," Ziva muttered as she got up from behind her desk.

"What was it that you wanted me to see?" McGee asked Tony as they walked towards the elevator.

"It's just another picture of Leia Organa in a bikini, McGee." Gibbs answered before Tony had even the chance to take in a breath. The younger man just hung his mouth in awe.

"Hey Boss, I didn't know were a fellow fan," Tony said jokingly. "Bet you liked Princess Leia, too? You know, she was so..."

The elevator opened and Gibbs' hand smacked Tony's head again. Ziva's grin grew wider.

"Ouch," Tony grunted. "Yeah, of course you liked Mara Jade better. She was a redhead."

* * *

><p>"I've seen something like this once in Edinburgh," Ducky said.<p>

The team gathered in an old abandoned factory hall in the suburb of a small Maryland town about twenty minutes from DC. They stood together in the middle of the hall and were looking up at a dead body hanging from the ceiling by its feet.

"I did too," Tony replied. "Only the guy wasn't hanging from the ceiling but from a tree. And it wasn't in Edinburgh, but in The Pirates of the Caribbean. The second movie."

"Did they show how to get the body down?" McGee asked.

"Nope," Tony said. "In fact, Will Turner was still alive at the time."

"Ziva," Gibbs called. The former Mossad officer immediately stood attentive, waiting for orders. "Climb up there and get the body down."

"I'll help you up," Tony offered. "I can...give you a boost. Maybe hold your feet."

"You would not dare," Ziva hissed. "Not if you are happy about having your..."

"McGee, help Ziva up," Gibbs ordered. "DiNozzo, come with me."

"Okay, but I'm calling Amnesty International right now," Tony mumbled, unaware that Gibbs heard him.

"Stop that whining or you'll definitely need to call Amnesty International, unless you want to be head-slapped again."

"Right, boss," Tony said sheepishly and walked outside through the back door with Gibbs.

They discovered tire tracks in the mud, so Tony began photographing and documenting it. The air was cold and the forecast called for snow, due to start drifting any second. Tony shivered.

"The mud has hardened from the cold weather." Gibbs observed, standing right behind his subordinate. "Go to the truck and get the plaster. Take prints for Abby to analyze. I'm gonna question the kids who found the body."

"Sure, Boss," Tony nodded. Then he remembered something and jumped to his feet. "Hey Boss, you know..."

At the same moment, the sound of a gunshot filled the air, followed by Tony's painful scream and then a loud thump of a body hitting the ground.

_... surprise? Any guess? Thanks for reading!_


	2. 1 The Captives

_Hey everyone! Here's another chapter I promised you. The next will probably take some more time because of the graduation exams, which are taking place next week on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning CET, which means Wednesday morning and late night in America. So please, wish me good luck because I really feel I'm about to fail grandiously. About the university entrance exams... well, it looks promising - if I graduate, it seems I have at least one place to study. Haha._

_Now, to the story - I hope you were looking forward to see this chapter. The massive feedback really took my breath away. I didn't expect that! So please, let me thank you all for all those reviews, story alerts and favourite story alerts you gave it - it really made my whole week. I promise to work on the rest of the story any time between learning, and working through all the new story ideas that I got._

_Many thanks again to LD100 and Drama-Duchess. Love you, girls!_

_Hope you all enjoy reading this and if so, feel free to leave a review - I accept and welcome all of them._

_Chapter 1 - The Captives_

"Did you hear that?" McGee shouted as the gunfire echoed in the factory hall.

"You'd have to be deaf to miss that. Ducky, Jimmy, take cover." Ziva instructed and drew her weapon. With gun in hand, she moved quickly.

The old M.E. and his assistant immediately followed her orders. They both tried to pretend they didn't hear the scream that followed the gunshot.

"No, no, no – McGee!" Ziva yelled as she saw someone shutting the gate into the back way of the hall. There was a loud clanging sound of locking, perhaps with a crossbar. The suspect had barricaded the exit. "Move your ass over there and try the front gate! Come on! Hurry!"

"Federal agents, freeze!" McGee yelled when he saw movement outside.

He fired a shot, but missed. The suspect disappeared from the doorway. McGee ran towards the door to try and stop it from being closed. Unfortunately, it slammed shut just like the back door. They were trapped, locked in a factory hall with a dead body still hanging from the ceiling.

Ziva was so angry she kicked the wall and muttered something vulgar in her own language. The others didn't need a translator to know what she was saying.

* * *

><p>Gibbs had his gun drawn. He scanned the area carefully for suspects moving, but saw nothing of the sort. His eyes then traveled to where Tony lay on the ground. He had a pained grimace on his face and was holding his right shoulder. Blood was trickling through his fingers and was gasping loudly for air.<p>

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs yelled and dropped to his knees beside his subordinate. "You hear me, Tony?" Gibbs observed the wound.

Tony was shot in the back. The bullet appeared to have penetrated through the scapula and possibly ended up in the clavicle, as there was no indication of an exit wound. Gibbs could see the collarbone protruding in an odd angle beneath Tony's shirt. Judging by the amount of blood loss, it didn't seem like there were any arterial damage. Tony's life was in no immediate danger, but nonetheless, Gibbs had to get Tony to the hospital as soon as possible. Without the proper medical treatment, something like this could easily get infected. The wound caused Tony great pain and his right arm was starting to turn numb. Consciousness would be the next thing to go.

"Yeah, Boss..." Tony said through clenched teeth. "Just gimme a second..."

"Easy, Tony," Gibbs mumbled and looked around helplessly. He heard a rattling sound coming from the direction of the factory's back door. The trees surrounding the path of the road obscured his view.

"Ziva! McGee! Over here!" Gibbs called. He got up and hoped to see his team come racing towards him. On the contrary, there were no signs of anyone.

_Where the hell are they? They should've been here by now_. Gibbs thought.

"Gibbs, behind you! Turn around!" Tony hollered in warning.

Gibbs turned back to the injured agent. He saw the horror in Tony's eyes. But it was too late. Before Gibbs could react, a vicious blow to the back of his head rendered darkness around him. He dropped to the ground. Just before he passed out, he heard the sweet sounds of the ocean and a muffled word that said _"Gibbs!"_

* * *

><p>"Come on, guys. Can't you speed it up?" McGee shouted impatiently. The cops that were supposed to be watching the crime scene were now trying to open the door from the outside. Ziva was so flustered with helplessness that she began swearing and throwing insults to incompetent people in some foreign language. Ducky tried to calm her down but stopped after he saw Ziva tear an iron pipe off the wall.<p>

"Ah, here we go." One of the cops said as the gate finally opened. McGee ran out first, followed by Ziva. Both agents were hoping to find Gibbs and Tony outside. However, that was not the case. Something was wrong.

They found the blood stains along with several footprints in the dirt that did not belong to Gibbs or Tony. Lying a few yards away were two cell phones that belonged to the agents. McGee knelt down to retrieve them.

"Oh, no! Something happened here." Ziva gasped, too stunned to react for a second. Suddenly, her shock changed to anger when she spotted the three cops who were supposed to be on watch. "Hey! Where were you? How is it that you allowed our agents to go missing?"

"Sorry, Ma'am," one of the cops began, but quickly refrained himself from saying anymore when he saw Ziva pull out her gun and aimed the barrel at him, point blank. McGee, who saw what was happening, sprang up and placed a hand on the top of the gun.

"What are you doing? Have you lost your mind?" McGee forced her to lower the gun. He saw the fury in her eyes and hoped she wouldn't release the anger on him.

"What am_ I_ doing?" Ziva whispered irritably. "The question you should be asking is - what were _they_ doing?" She pointed to the cops, who appeared pretty nervous by now. "They were supposed to be securing the crime scene perimeter and letting us know if they saw anything suspicious. Because they neglected to do their jobs, Gibbs and Tony are missing."

_And injured,_ Ziva and McGee both added silently but neither of them wanted to admit it aloud.

"You can't kill a cop, Ziva." McGee said with a sigh. He turned around to meet the first cop. "Please explain yourselves." McGee demanded firmly.

"Well, you see." The officer gulped. "Bobby here got a call from his wife. She's eight and a half months pregnant. She said she was going into labor, so we had to take the patrol car. We've got only one car." He stopped talking when the special agents glared at them.

"So, it took all three of you to drive to Bobby's house to check on his wife." Ziva was fuming and bitter. "Did she even have the baby?"

"It – it was a false alarm," Bobby answered.

"It seems to me that you boys were goofing off. " She berated and reached for her gun again. McGee was surprised that Ziva got the slang right. She was always struggling with the American slang.

"Ziva….don't!" McGee warned. "You don't wanna do that."

"Come on, McGee. Let me shoot them." Ziva's expression showed that she was serious. "It will take just a second..." The three cops were sweating something fierce.

"Ziva, now's not the time." McGee reasoned. He grinned mischievously and added, "After we find Gibbs and Tony, I'm sure Gibbs will allow you to play target practice a bit."

"_If_ we find them, McGee. _If. _Have you seen the blood?"

"We have to approach this with a cool head." McGee advised and touched her shoulder. He was very aware that Ziva was quite capable of ripping his arm out of it's socket. Ziva did not like to be touched. He was glad to be one of the exceptions. Well, having his good arm broken in fifteen places probably wouldn't make him efficient in processing the crime scene and searching for his teammates. "We need back-up on this. Make the call, Ziva. Meanwhile, we need to process both crime scenes now."

"Alright," she said hesitantly. She turned and walked away still with rage burning in her eyes.

McGee sighed and turned to face the cops, who were standing there speechless. "You," McGee pointed to Bobby. "You'd better call your wife and tell her to put a hold on having the kid. You're going to the Navy Yard with us."

* * *

><p>Gibbs vaguely heard some sounds around him. He realized he'd been hearing them for a while, but only now did his brain register it. He tried to focus on the noises, hoping to identify them. After what felt like hours, he finally figured it out. It was someone's breathing in addition to rippling water, which sounded far away.<p>

He opened his eyes slowly and was blinded by a powerful ray of light that came from a light bulb hanging about seven feet above him. His head hurt. He shook his head lightly and moved his hand to rub his eyes.

"Hey, Boss," he heard DiNozzo say. He sounded very close. "Happy to see you stopped playing Sleeping Beauty."

"DiNozzo," Gibbs murmured. He lifted himself into a sitting position. He noticed his subordinate sitting up with his back leaning against a wall. Tony's slumped forward a little and was cradling his right arm. His complexion was chalky white with dark blue circles under his eyes. The blood loss started taking its toll on Tony's body. He looked exhausted and struggled to breathe steadily. Staying awake was really hard.

"How are you doing, Tony?" Gibbs asked. He didn't like seeing his friend falling into shock.

"Great, still dancin'. You?" Tony tried to keep a cheery note, but was not too successful given his labored breathing. The sound of Tony gasping for air was ripping Gibbs' ears off.

"Been better," Gibbs admitted and started checking Tony's wound. DiNozzo's shirt was covered in dried blood, but it was more the new blood coming out of the wound that bothered Gibbs. "You don't look too good. You're still bleeding."

"Yeah, I know," Tony grimaced. "Getting pounded the second time didn't help."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well... I opened my mouth on that guy – the guy with the ears like an elephant. He was one that knocked you out. Got kicked in the shoulder..."

Gibbs made a mental note to plug a few bullets into the person responsible for all this. "I'll put pressure on the wound and clean it a bit. Just keep still."

Easier said than done. Tony gnashed his teeth to prevent himself from screaming and cursing from the pain as Gibbs worked on him. Gibbs tore a piece of his shirt and cleaned the wound the best he could. It felt like being branded by a red-hot iron.

"It's infected, Tony." Gibbs frowned. With his palm an inch away, he felt the heat emanating from Tony's shoulder. The bleeding was slowly being replaced by swelling.

"Why am I not surprised?" Tony wheezed. He was sweating and breathing heavily. Gibbs touched his friend's forehead. Tony's skin was already warmer than it should be. His temperature was skyrocketing. "Oh, don't tell me how hot I am, Boss," he joked.

"Just keep your mood up," Gibbs replied. As long as Tony still had a sense of humor, he was fine. "And don't forget to breathe, soldier." He added as Tony tried to laugh, but that only led him into a coughing fit.

"It's gonna be like the plague all over again," Tony mumbled tiredly afterwards. He was nearly limp in Gibbs' arms. "At least... this time it's just my shoulder that hurts."

Gibbs had no answer to that. "Did you keep track of time?" He changed the subject.

"Yea, Boss….a bit…" Tony said weakly. His eyes closed for a few seconds and Gibbs gave his face a tap. Tony's eyes fluttered open. "Hmmm…..We've been here for maybe...I dunno….half an hour, give or take a few mins. The ride here took about the same time... though not really sure about that."

"That's good, Tony. Just keep awake, will you?"

"On it, Boss…" Tony's voice became faint, but he managed to keep his eyes open most of the time. When it looked like he was about to fall asleep, Gibbs gave him a tap on the face. Gibbs needed to keep his agent conscious because if he didn't, there was a possibility Tony may never wake.

Meanwhile, Gibbs tried to find out where he was and who his captors were but come up empty. They were locked in an empty basement with no windows. There was just an iron door and the light bulb. The bullet in Tony's shoulder was there only lead at the moment. No way was Gibbs going to remove it now, even if the captor's name was written on it.

He heard footsteps from above and suddenly wished he had his gun on him. He advised Tony to keep still and stood partly in front of him acting as a shield to the injured man.

The iron door opened and the figure of a tall, muscular man in khaki pants, army boots and light brown jacket appeared. He wore a baseball cap on his head. Dark blonde hair was sticking out from under it. Gibbs didn't recognize the man, but thinking back to what Tony said before, this had to be the one who kicked Tony in his wounded shoulder. Boy did the man have big ears... and a hunting knife in his left hand.

After a closer look, Gibbs realized the man was also holding a plastic bottle in his other hand, presumably filled with water. He motioned Gibbs with his knife to step further into the corner of the basement with hands folded behind his head. Then he threw the bottle to the ground near Tony's feet and turned to leave.

"Wait," Gibbs shouted and took a careful, slow step forward. "Who are you? What do you want?"

The man just looked in the agent's eyes firmly and reached for the handle.

"Hey!" the former Marine yelled again. His voice echoed in the tiny space. He pointed to Tony, who was gasping for air. "He needs a doctor. He has weak lungs and his wound is infected."

Just as Tony said earlier, it was like with the plague all over again. This time, Gibbs knew he was going to witness what cyanosis looked like, when the lack of oxygen in Tony's body would turn his nose, lips and fingers into a bluish-violet. The contrast would be most visible with the white tone of his skin. There were no conditions or 32 hour waiting periods. Tony was stronger and younger back then. His body was able to battle it out. Now, he was a few years older and the strain left most of his lungs and heart tissue scarred beyond repair. Gibbs remembered a conversation he had with Ziva about three or four years ago while DiNozzo was on the infamous undercover mission and spent all his time chasing after Jeanne Benoit, the daughter of an international arms dealer. She was Tony's first real love and first real heartbreak.

Ziva had found out about Tony's frequent visits to the hospital after seeing a patient's bracelet on his wrist. Unaware of the true reason of his visits, she did some research on the internet and discussed her findings with Gibbs. According to a medical page focusing on the subject, pneumonic plague was a life-threatening disease that could relapse after an unspecified period of time. It caused irrevocable damage to the lungs, heart and other organs. Gibbs knew from what he saw. He'd seen what the disease did to Tony. It was believed that Tony only had a few hours to live. Gibbs remembered visiting Tony at the hospital everyday after the young agent proved them all wrong.

After Ziva came to him, Gibbs consulted Ducky about Tony's medical records and wanted to verify the actual damage the plague would cause. He learned that it wasn't as bad as Ziva feared. Majority of Tony's lungs were covered by small inner scars, which as Ducky explained, lowered the amount of air flowing into Tony's lungs. The same damage weakened the young agent's heart muscle. Although DiNozzo claimed he felt fine, which he probably did, his body was a ticking time bomb that could detonate after another fit of severe pneumonia and heart weakness. Fortunately, he was able to pass the limits set for NCIS agents on the physicals. He was cleared for field duty, but no physician could ensure he was completely out of the woods. All these memories came back to Gibbs' as he stared at his opponent's hunting knife.

"No doctor," Elephant Ears replied sharply.

"Look, you don't want a dead federal agent on your hands." Gibbs pleaded. He had to do something for Tony's sake.

"I don't care." The man said with a laugh.

"When we get out of this, and trust me we will, I will hunt you down."

Elephant Ears slowly pointed his knife to Gibbs' face. "Shut up. You got water 'n that's all you gonna get." He left the room, letting the heavy door slam and lock behind him.

Gibbs' grabbed the bottled water and opened it. "Drink, DiNozzo." He said as he brought the opening to Tony's lips.

"Guess it's not... cooled Chardonnay, is it?" Tony whispered and eyed the bottle suspiciously. His voice was hoarse.

"It's the next best thing." Gibbs replied.

Tony downed a few gulps before another coughing fit erupted. This particular coughing fit was different than the others. The small cough escalated to a violent sort of cough that sounded like one desperately trying to pull air in lungs that refused to work properly. Gibbs waited for the fit to subside. It took some time before Tony took in a short breath that was accepted by his lungs.

"Better?" Gibbs asked. It was painful to watch Tony suffer so much.

"Definitely not Chardonnay," Tony's raspy voice said.

"Try a bit more," Gibbs replied. "Take slow breaths."

When Tony didn't want any more water, Gibbs took a sip out of the bottle. "You should keep it. It's no use to me... anymore," Tony insisted.

Gibbs saw the same desperate look in Tony's eyes as lay dying from the plague. He was entirely aware of his surroundings, but was too weak to show much of a response.

"Did you hit your head or something? Cut out the nonsense." Gibbs snapped. He tore another piece of his shirttail and soaked it with water. He then applied it to Tony's forehead in hopes of bringing the fever down.

"C'mon Boss, let's face it...they're not gonna let us go. We don't have any weapons." Tony said. His voice softened. "I'm done, Gibbs. This is it. My number's up. The road ends here." He tried to sound nonchalant about it, but was failing miserably. His breathing worsened and the panting grew louder and heavier. He was barely able to form full sentences at a time.

"It doesn't have to. We don't give up that easily." Gibbs lectured.

"Look, maybe you can take down all four of them by yourself... but I can't. I'm just slowing you down. I'll get us both killed. But you - you have a chance. You need to get out of here…save yourself." Tony blurted.

"Stop it, Tony. I think it must be the fever talking. I wouldn't leave you here to die. Seems to me you don't know anything about us Marines. No one gets left behind." Gibbs forced a smile. He actually didn't remember saying so many words at once for a long time already. "You said there were four of them, huh? At least I know what I'm up against. Don't worry DiNozzo, I'm gonna get us outta here. When there is a will, there is a way."

There was a short pause in conversation. "You know Boss, sometimes I wish...you weren't so damn perfect." Tony beamed. He was glad that Gibbs wasn't going to leave him. But if it came to it, no sacrifice was too big for Tony.

"Well," Gibbs grinned back at him and lifted the water bottle. "Sometimes, I really wish you would just shut up."

* * *

><p>"You are in a big trouble," Ziva glared maliciously at the man sitting in front of her. She leaned over the table in the interrogation room and stared him in the eyes.<p>

"I just went to see my pregnant wife," Officer Arnold "Bobby" Dawson replied coldly. "That's not a crime."

"No, but you were on duty. If you had an emergency, you should have called another unit to take your place. You abandoned a hot crime scene," Ziva tried so hard to remain composed and not let her anger take over. "It is your fault that two federal agents are now missing. One of them is injured."

"I didn't pull the trigger." The officer said.

"You are hiding something." Ziva eyed him suspiciously.

"Ha, you have no proof." He grinned.

"Oh but I will." Ziva got up and left the room. Outside she met McGee, who was waiting for her with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked lost in his thoughts until she put her hand on his shoulder and gave him an encouraging look.

"The other two cops, O'Brian and Urban, are not involved. I went through their records. No priors. And they both barely even finished high school. Urban had to repeat his senior year. I highly doubt either of them would have the know-how to devised a plan to capture two federal agents. Plus, they don't have a motive."

"Dawson is withholding something," Ziva growled. "The man is as sly as a wolf."

"You mean fox. Sly as a fox," McGee corrected. "Something about him seemed off back there. You think he's involved in all of this?"

"He was not cooperative. The aggression came on a little too quickly after throwing some accusations. I am sure he is not being honest."

"Let's go see Ducky," McGee proposed. "He said he finished the autopsy."

Ziva nodded and followed her teammate to the elevators. McGee, who in the absence of Special Agent in Charge Gibbs and Special Senior Field Agent DiNozzo, became a temporary leader of the team. The way he took charge amazed Ziva. The tone of his voice when he said, "my team, my lead" showed how much the agent had grown under Gibbs' direction. He had come far from being coined "probie."

As strange as it may be, Ziva believed that her assistance added with Tony's constant teasing and occasional abuse, formed McGee's professional skills. Tony would never admit it, but he did the things he did to bring out the best in them and show them how to be better agents. Aside from this, he looked out for his team. He loved to haze them, but deep down inside, he always had their backs – no matter what. He took blame for Kate's death and still carried the weight of the guilt. Ziva saw it and Gibbs probably did, too.

Ziva never told Tony that she knew the reasons behind the harassments. She understood why he hid behind a teenaged mask, thinking nobody could see his true self. It was easier to act like a clown than be serious. This way, he couldn't get hurt. There were times when his vulnerability got the better of him. Like the time McGee accidentally shot a cop. Feeling quite miserable and guilty, McGee needed a friend and Tony was there. Another moment was when Ziva's friend died. She needed someone to talk to but was way too proud to ask. Tony comforted her. Then there was the arrest of Ziva's Mossad boyfriend, who turned out to be a traitor. The situation turned tragic in the end, but even the fact that Ziva survived after being held in a desert hell for long months spoke in volumes.

Dr. Mallard was waiting for them. The dead marine was lying on the slab before him. Ducky had a troubled and concerned look on his face. McGee and Ziva entered the room.

"What was the cause of death?" McGee asked.

"Quite the way I expected," the old doctor replied. "Sergeant Matthews' death was caused by blood pressing into the vessels of his brain. He suffered a severe stroke which cut off the oxygen flow to his brain and eventually caused his heart to stop. Also, found discoloration here," he pointed to the dead man's ankles, "and here," he pointed to the wrists. "Looks as though he was alive when bound and lifted. It was a slow and painful death."

"Are there any other injuries we should know about?" McGee asked.

"Otherwise, he was a healthy male in his mid-thirties," Ducky shook his head. McGee's solemn facial expression revealed that he wanted more information.

"We ran a blood test of the blood you found by the factory hall. Mr. Palmer brought the samples to Abigail. And I have the results here." The M.E. walked to his desk and retrieved a piece of paper. "As you know, among the minor details, Anthony and Jethro don't share the same blood type. While young Anthony is A positive, Jethro's blood type is O negative. An O negative is a universal receiver. Any blood type can receive blood from an O negative…"

"Ducky, please," Ziva cut him off. Ducky had a habit of rambling whenever he was nervous about something, or just simply had a thing or ten to add to a situation. "Whose blood does it belong to?"

"Well," Ducky said slowly. "The blood type was an A positive. But just to be sure, Abigail matched the DNA we have on NCIS database, the injured one is…"

"Tony," McGee finished.

"Unfortunately, there's no way to determine the severity of the injury." Ducky continued. "But given the amount of blood found at the crime scene, it does not appear to be arterial injury. If an artery was severed, there would be more blood. But since they've been gone for nearly three hours..."

"He's fine, Ducky," McGee sounded so sure of himself. "It's probably just a flesh wound. Gibbs won't let anyone lay a finger on Tony."

"We need to find them quickly." Ducky said.

* * *

><p>The good news was that Tony stopped bleeding. The bad news was that the wound was infected. Fever along with blood loss caused Tony to drift slowly into shock. His lips, nose and fingertips were already turning shades of violet-blue. Dark circles appeared underneath his half-closed puffy eyes. He'd lost the feeling of his right arm, which was caught in a sling Gibbs made using parts of his shirt.<p>

Gibb's head was pounding and twitching from the mild concussion he suffered, but like a true soldier, he neglected it and took care of his subordinate. He checked Tony's shoulder every now and then and each time he liked his findings less and less. The swelling had reached the young man's collarbone, which was sticking forward in an odd angle under his skin. Gibbs was concerned that it would penetrate through. He wasn't a doctor and only possessed basic knowledge of dressing wounds. Getting Tony to a hospital was top priority. Judging by what the wound had become, this was a time to be worried.

When he heard footsteps coming, a plan popped in his head. It wasn't the greatest plan but right then, he had no other choice. Gibbs never liked Russian roulette, but it was either death or death. Nothing to lose. Well, except maybe their lives. Gibbs refused to let the man he considered a son die this way. He had to do something, either to free them both or die trying.

He leaned closer to Tony and tapped his cheek lightly. He was rewarded by two unfocused, tired green eyes locking weakly on him. "Tony, listen to me... I need you to get ready."

* * *

><p>"Oh, Tim!" Abby shouted as she threw herself into McGee's arms. The decorative chains hanging from her collar and red-and-black pants rattled. "Tell me you're gonna find them."<p>

"I'm gonna find them," McGee promised. "C'mon, Abby. You're choking me."

She loosened her grip just a little. "They've already taken Gibbs and Tony. I don't want anything to happen to you too." Her hands were trembling slightly. She needed a Caf-Pow so badly.

"Nothing's gonna happen to me."

"Tony says that all the time and now he's hurt."

"Tony talks too much, Abby. Besides, he knows the risks. We all do."

Abby tightened her embrace again. "I don't like it. I just don't."

"Sorry, Abs... it's just how it is." McGee returned the hug and kissed the top of her head.

She leaned back and drove her little fist playfully into his chest. "Never apologize, McGee. It's a sign of weakness."

McGee smiled at how strong Abby was at times like these. "What do you have, Abby?"

"I'll start with what I don't have," Abby frowned. "Aside from our guys, I don't have names, McGee. I'm missing the names of the kids who found Sergeant Matthews."

"The cops at the scene didn't take their names. The boys ran away the moment they heard the shots."

"Just great," Abby huffed in disapproval.

"So we're at a dead end then?" McGee asked feeling a bit discouraged.

"No, Timmy. Positive thinking!" Abby exclaimed and gave McGee a soft slap to the back of the head, just the thing Gibbs would do to Tony. "I did some research."

They turned around as they heard the soft 'ding' of the arriving elevator. A few seconds later, Ziva entered the lab. She was wearing beige army pants, heavy combat boots and a fitted brown T-shirt. Her hair has pulled back into a pony-tail and she was holding a Caf-Pow in her hand.

"Ziva!" Abby called. "You came! I've got news."

"I got your message," the former Mossad officer replied. She put the Caf-Pow in front of Abby and watched her eyes light up.

"Officer Dawson – creepy guy – gave me goose bumps when I saw him in the interrogation video." Abby admitted. "So, I decided to run a check on him."

It wasn't unusual for Abby to review the interrogation videos of prime suspects. She often did that when she was at a lost for clues. She did just the same when DiNozzo was framed for murder and when McGee was accused of killing an undercover metro cop.

"What did you find?" McGee asked.

"Well, the part about his pregnant wife was really odd," Abby said. "So I..."

"Let me guess, he does not really have a wife," Ziva interrupted.

"Oh, he does," Abby shook her head and hit a key on her keyboard. A driver's license with a photo of a blonde woman in her mid-30s appeared along with a profile.

"Meet Jessica Dawson, 33, a graduate of Baltimore College with a bachelor's degree in English literature." Abby hit another key and a medical record appeared on screen. "She gave birth a week ago at Maryland's own All Souls Medical Center. It's that brand new hospital complex with the beautiful fountain in the front lawn. Jessica had a 5-pound baby boy named Jesse T. Dawson."

"He lied to us," McGee breathed.

"If Dawson was in on the abduction, his wife may also be an accomplice," Ziva deduced.

"He wasn't at the scene at the time of the kidnapping, according to O'Brian and Urban," McGee added. "And I think those two weren't aware of the situation. Conspiring to shoot and kidnap two federal agents isn't something you'd chat freely about with your buddies over a cup of coffee. Dawson had to have an accomplice other than his wife. There needs to be a good motive for all of them."

"I agree. One person could not possibly take down Gibbs _and_ DiNozzo." Ziva confirmed.

"That's for sure," McGee agreed. "I'm gonna inform the Director and keep him posted of the situation. You two lovely ladies please try to find some info on who killed Sergeant Matthews and if there were any connections between him and Dawson."

"And what about the back-up team?" Ziva asked. "What work is going to be left for them?"

"Well, there's always the paperwork, isn't there?" McGee flashed a smile as he walked through the door to the elevator.

"I knew there was a reason why I love him so," Abby spoke to a plush hippo sitting on the shelf above her computer. "Isn't that right, Bert?"

* * *

><p>Gibbs released the door and knelt beside the man's unconscious body. He felt the man's neck for a pulse. Blood was pouring out of a broken nose. Gibbs had been hiding patiently behind the iron door, waiting for his victim to arrive. When the man unlocked the door and stepped into the room, Gibbs slammed the iron door against him. The blow knocked the suspect out cold.<p>

To Gibbs' dismay, the man before him was not Elephant Ears. Instead, it was a rather short, heavily-tattooed, dark skinned man in his late 30s. Gibbs would have preferred this to be Elephant Ears so he could add a few good blows to the person who took the biggest part in hurting Tony.

Gibbs took the revolver from the man's waist band. He checked the firearm and noticed there were just three rounds left in the cylinder. He made his way back to Tony.

"Ok DiNozzo, it's time to go," Gibbs mumbled and pulled Tony to his feet. He noticed how much Tony was using him as support. Gibbs swung Tony's good arm around his shoulder for leverage. They proceeded out of the room and up the narrow stairs. Gibbs was practically carrying his subordinate.

They had to stop in the middle of the stairway as Tony's breathing got way too erratic and shallow. Gibbs didn't want to bring about another coughing fit now. He didn't care about being too noisy (actually, he was pretty sure someone above ground already heard the commotion) but Tony nearly passed out the last time he went into a coughing frenzy. After that, Tony joked mildly: "Passing out? DiNozzos do no such thing. It is unheard of."

"Easy, Tony. You need to breathe. Take short breaths." Gibbs shifted Tony's weight to better support him.

"I can't," Tony wheezed. Gibbs feared the symptoms of pneumonia were starting to take over.

"Don't talk. Just breathe." Gibbs instructed.

Heat was emanating from Tony's rising body temperature. The former Marine worried about the pneumonia developing in Tony's fragile lung and the toxins coursing through the blood that caused pneumonia in the first place. He wondered how much time Tony really had.

Tony looked up and caught Gibb's eyes. "Go," he whispered softly.

"No." Gibbs refused.

"Boss...you have to go. I – I want you to go." Tony argued.

"Oh, I am gonna go….just not without you." Gibbs said as he scanned the top of the stairs for movement. From where he stood, it was hard to tell if anyone was hiding around the corner. He had to make sure no one was going to ambush them. "Listen to me, DiNozzo. Here's the plan. I'm going to go up there first and clear the house. Then I'll come back for you. Need you to stay put. Understand?"

"Just leave..." Tony challenged but stopped short when Gibbs smacked the back of his head with his hand. The smack wasn't as hard as it should be, but enough to break through to the younger man's stubbornness.

"Shut up, DiNozzo. That's an order." The lead agent stared into his subordinate's exhausted green eyes. Gibbs stared at him until the loyalty and absolute trust returned.

DiNozzo was a like a constant sparkling ball of energy that needed to be tamed by authority. He was a restless, and sometimes reckless, type of character who got bored easily. It was in his nature to be unbearable to those around him when boredom hit. He trusted no one. Regardless of all this, Gibbs knew the real Tony. The real Tony was beyond loyal and proved to be, not only capable, but also an excellent Special Agent. He was resourceful and good at what he did. This was the reason why Gibbs hand-picked the young man years ago to be part of his team.

After years of working together, Gibbs realized how much he depended on the cocky fellow, whose only interests seemed to be movies, women, and junk food. He also noticed Tony warming up to him, occasionally sharing personal stories. The true Anthony DiNozzo was far from the juvenile womanizer he wanted others to believe. Underneath the gung-ho attitude, Gibbs knew it was a cover for his vulnerability. He knew about Tony's rough childhood and suspected Tony to be a victim of child abuse. But one thing he was sure of – he never had to worry about Tony going against a direct order or intentionally disappointing him.

The argument over who stays and who goes has been resolved. Tony remained silent. He leaned up against the wall and took a slow, deep breath. "Good," Gibbs smiled and patted Tony's cheek. "I'll be right back."

Gibbs reached the top of the stairs and looked outside. He saw that they'd been locked in a basement of a cabin in the woods somewhere. There were tall trees all around outside as far as he could tell. A cozy living room with a fireplace was only a few steps away from the door. And a tiny kitchen could be seen adjacent to the fireplace. Gibbs saw movement and seconds later, Elephant Ears appeared with the hunting knife held firmly in his hand. He pounced towards Gibbs, but only to be stopped by two bullets to the chest that knocked him over backwards. The smoke swirled upwards from the revolver that Gibbs fired.

Gibbs made his way to Elephant Ears and pressed the barrel of the gun onto the wound in the man's lower chest. "Why did you bring us here?" Gibbs demanded with a cold stare.

"Go to hell," Elephant Ears growled and spat at Gibbs.

"Answer me or I'll pull the trigger."

"No, you won't," the man choked. He grinned, showing teeth stained with blood. "You can't."

Gibbs pressed his gun further into the wound. Elephant Ears screamed in pain. "Wanna bet? Why did you shoot him?"

"He wasn't the target…you were." The man hissed painfully. "Hank was aiming for your head...that guy got hit in the crossfire."

"Who's Hank? Is he the one who's downstairs now?" Gibbs inquired.

"Yeah...you killed him?" The man coughed. It sounded all too much like DiNozzo's desperate fight with the plague several years ago.

"Not yet," Gibbs replied. He'd finish the man off with his bare hands. "Why did you want to shoot me?"

"Hank, me...other boys...you destroyed our Marine carriers...smuggling, you said..." The man let out a half-angry, half-annoying laugh. "Hank's the best shooter out of all of us. He's got the revolver under the counter..."

"The hell of a sniper he is," Gibbs hissed. "Where are we? Who are the others? I want names."

"Boys'll be here...in five minutes...and you've got just one bullet," Elephant Ears taunted.

Gibbs had to control himself from wanting to beat the man to death. However, there would be no time for that right now. Time was wasting. If the cavalry was coming, he had to move fast. He had to get Tony and get out of there. The forest would give them some protection until they could find a phone.

Gibbs' eyes caught a set of walkie-talkies on the kitchen counter. Elephant Ears was grinning at him like a psycho maniac. There were bloody bubbles foaming at his mouth. Then the agent heard a thump, like as if a body had fallen,coming from the stairs.

"Guess the smart-ass is out of the game now..." Elephant Ears said.

Gibbs ignored the remark and reached for both the walkie-talkies on the counter and the fallen hunting knife on the floor. "Rot in hell, jack-ass," he growled and ran back to the stairway.

He found Tony on his hands and knees trying to crawl up the stairs. Breathing was a challenge for Tony. His inhales and exhales were short choking gasps. Gibbs was aware of the slight tremors that racked Tony's body when he touched him.

Gibbs tucked the revolver and the knife into his pants pocket and the walkie-talkies into his jacket pockets. He slid his right arm around DiNozzo's shoulders. Tony was in a lot of pain but he kept quiet and allowed Gibbs to drag him any way he wished. His legs trembled and could hardly hold himself up.

"Just a few more steps...at-a-boy...come on, come on..." Gibbs coached.

As the two men finally stumbled to the front door, Gibbs heard a car approaching the cabin. Upon stepping out of the cabin, he noticed the air had gotten much colder and snow had started drifting. Gibbs acknowledged Tony's drive to keep up with his pace. But it was only a matter of time before the injured man could hobble no further. Gibbs hoped when that time came, they would have made good distance.

"Hey," Gibbs lightly tapped Tony's cheek as they stopped to catch their breath. They had gone over a hill which shielded them from the view. Sadly, the former Marine had no idea where they were, had just one knife and one bullet in a revolver. He was almost sure that their own knives and guns were still in the property of their captors, which wasn't really good. And he had absolutely no clue which direction would lead them to the nearest connection with the rest of the world, but he had a gut feeling to follow the way from where he'd heard the car approaching, just from afar, hidden in the thickly covered terrain, so they wouldn't get re-captured immediately. One way or another, they had no time to waste. "You ok? We need to keep moving."

"Sure...Boss." Tony nodded in his feverish state.

An angry scream followed by excessive profanity was heard coming from the cabin. With that, the two men began their long journey into the dark woods.

_End of the chapter._

_Thanks for reading!_

_PS: Rest in peace, Mike Franks, you will be dearly missed._


End file.
